[MAGNUS]‘Tread carefully,’ Creed echoes in my mind, and I halt, taken by surprise. I will never get used to being advised by him ever again. Not since the prolonged silences and mockery I suffered after the death of Nyra.With Alistair by my side, I march to Ruelle’s chambers, our footsteps echoing through the stone corridors. I’m not surprised to find my stepmother, Lady Celia, there. However, the sight of Princess Daphne lounging gracefully on one of the lilac chaises catches me off guard. They are all seated on the set of lilac chaises that Ruelle had insisted on bringing back from Qaiven a few weeks ago, engaged in what appears to be a deeply intriguing discussion. A hush falls over the room as I clear my throat, the sound slicing through their conversation like a blade. Daphne is the first to notice me, her brown eyes turning sharply in my direction, assessing and calculating.“Prince Magnus,” she mumbles in a honeyed voice, dipping her head slightly in a gesture of respect that
[ELARA]From the shore, I watch the Cursed Gulf bubble. Steam billows from its surface, boiling despite the cold wind that prickles my bare arms, forming tiny cuts through which blood oozes. But it isn't red; it's a mixture of black and gold, shimmering as it trickles down my arms. Dark clouds gather in the sky, shrouding the shore.My eyes are fixed on the lone cog approaching, paddled by a mysterious figure, its mast bearing a singular sail adorned with a skull. The air is filled with the sound of water splashing and gurgling. As it edges closer, I hold my breath. When the cog grinds to a halt on the sand, the sky clears, revealing the figure.The man wears a dark robe, his face hidden by a long hood. His hands gripping the paddle are plain bones, devoid of skin. My body casts a long shadow on the sand, but he has no shadow.It’s the Soulkeeper.This isn’t real, I realize with a gasp. ‘Wake up,’ Lila’s distorted voice echoes in my mind. ‘Wake up!’But I can’t will myself awake. I can
[ELARA]We’re both frozen, caught by each other unexpectedly. Momentarily, the corridors and every other thought fade away, leaving only Magnus and the inexplicable pull he has over me.He tears his golden gaze away... in shame? But not quickly enough. His eyes have already captured me, making me lose a bit of myself. They seem to stare straight into my soul, unraveling all my fears and desires. I wonder, is he also reminded of the last time we were this close to each other?His broad shoulders seem like they could bear the weight of the world, and I think of how it’ll feel to have them wrapped around me.‘Get a hold of yourself!’ Lila exclaims, and I just close my eyes in defeat.When I open my eyes, promising myself to not act stupid, I find Magnus struggling to choose his words. He could simply walk away, avoiding the conversation altogether, but he remains rooted to the spot. His mouth opens and closes, and his lips catch my eyes. Instinctively, I lick mine. And that gesture moves
[ELARA]“Go away,” I mumble weakly before I remember what my husband did to hers, failing to stop tears from coming out of my eyes. “Please.”Although Lady Brook flinches at the hoarseness of my tone, she doesn’t leave. Her eyes dart between my knuckles and the patches of blood on the polished floor. “You’re hurt,” she observes softly. “Your wounds must be tended to.”“There’s no need,” I tell her, rising abruptly to my feet and hastily wiping my cheeks. “I have wolf blood. They’ll heal.”Lady Brook frowns. “The floor? And your gown?” “Talisa will take care of the floor. This gown I shall burn,” I tell her in a cold voice. She lets out a gasp, her eyes flickering to the hearth. “Oh, heavens! Did you do that?” she asks, hurrying to watch the burning clothes in the hearth. “You couldn’t. Who did that?”“Why does it matter?” I ask her, forcing myself to take another glance at the burnt painting. “They’re ruined.”She protests, “You can’t let this be seen by anyone, Princess Elara. Not e
[MAGNUS]The dilapidated entrance to the prison dungeon looms before me, watching with disappointment. Its stones, worn and crumbling from decades of neglect, seem to whisper ancient curses as I approach. The stone stairs crumble beneath my weight, forcing me to leap and catch the edge before the entire structure collapses into the void below.Gladly, prior to her disappearance, Morgana was cunning enough to craft a concealed entrance, imbued with dark magic. Now with her amulet, I can use it to open and close the entrance.‘She still lives,’ Creed resounds in my mind. ‘Right under your nose.’Morgana is not someone who will let anyone discover her. She will appear again when she wishes to. And so I don’t want to waste my precious time chasing away leads that she can smartly get rid of. Let her play her game. She will come to me when she’s bored. I’d had the prisoners moved to an isolated holding on the outskirts of Norhall, because somehow, a part of me had known I’d be needing the s
[CREED]The water that escapes out of the broken clear wall gushes around the many stones, and splashes against Creed’s black fur. But he’s quick and instantly alerts himself. It’s his eyes that see when the being in the water with a scaly tail lashes at him, and at the man his human likes to keep close, igniting his fury. He pounces at an instant between the man and the being, immersing himself into the water as it closes around him in an attempt at distraction. Creed succeeds, only to hear a rattling hiss echo through the water, erupting from the being’s neck. Its human-like arms try to clasp at his fur, its sharp mouth widening to take a bite, but he gracefully slides through the water. While the being is confused, Creed reaches its back and—despite the desperate denial of his human—closes his jaw around its scaly tail, biting it off his body.Warm, black blood spills out, mixing with the splashing water that has now escaped through crevices, getting a level lower. Letting out an
[ELARA]It’s in the middle of the night and most of the palace is asleep. Magnus leads me through the quiet corridors, guarded by sleepy humans. I follow him, half dazed from my disturbing sleep and half concerned about what I’m about to see. When I asked him to explain himself, he just turned away, lowering his eyes in defeat. Of course, she is dead, I think to myself as our footsteps echo through the high walls. It can’t be worse than that. Magnus walks to a part of the palace that I’ve never seen before. This part is different. Abandoned. No guards stand here. And then I find myself watching over his shoulder to an area of a wall that… shimmers. It ripples as if a stone has been cast across the surface of a lake. With a gasp, I watch Magnus pass through the wall and disappear. One careful, but fearful step puts me across too. And then it all dawns on me in horror. The dungeons. The place where Alec had been held behind silver bars in a cell. Where I’d heard screams of prisone
[ELARA]But it’s not possible. We made sure no one followed us. We heard no human heartbeats near the lair.Lila enlightens me, ‘A vampire’s heart doesn’t beat.’Instinctively, I move closer to Magnus, my hand latching to his arm in fear. His golden eyes flicker to me, momentarily softening, losing the anger with which he regarded Valen. I let go, wondering how embarrassing it must look. So this vampire has been watching us all this while and we didn’t have a clue. Since when has he been around here? The fear of what else he might know is overwhelming. Does he know of the passageway? Of the poison vial Zander handed over to me? My breathing is loud, much audible in the quiet dark dungeon until Magnus' voice cuts through the place, “I don’t trust you, Lord Valen. Your kind doesn’t have a reputation of being loyal.”Valen lets out an amused laugh, snapping the book shut. “You need my loyalty, Prince Magnus? I’m flattered. But all I can really give you right now is my curiosity. And
[MAGNUS]“Stay with me.”It’s a plea more than anything. I can’t bear the thought of losing Elara. The thought of her dying because I began to care for her. There’s no way to draw out the silver faster. It can take days… weeks.Silver. The most potent weapon to kill our kind. An silver tipped arrow lodged into her chest, just inches away from her heart. She could’ve been dead. But she isn’t. There has to be some purpose to this, right? Another cruel fate woven by the Moon Goddess?The healers know nothing. Rather, they know little of this. Their abilities are limited to what is approved by nature. What is permitted to be done within the confines of Caelondor. But Morgana? She can dive into alchemy, drawn upon dark magic — magic that saved Elara from becoming a rogue. She can take my blood again. Goddess, she can take my life if it means saving Elara’s.I’m about to go looking for Morgana when she appears at the edge of the bed. Not as herself, but as Talisa. But the glimmer of red in
[MAGNUS]“To the Royal Annoyance (my beloved brother), Magnus,Summer in Qaiven is brutal. I don’t know why I thought coming here was a good idea… Hold on, I’m only jesting! I have almost made up my mind to never leave. This place is wonderful just as you described from your varied visits for the Grand Conclave. And no, I’m not talking of the observatories of alchemists, or the quiet art galleries you love! The port of Vynov is certainly the grandest — the one in Caelondor pales shamefully in comparison. The streets are filled with people from all over the continent! Can you believe, I’ve already made friends with a High Lady who runs a brothel? Oh, Magnus. Unsaddle your horse. Of course, that is a jest, too. Your goons are keeping me perfectly safe from any danger that could be lurking. Frankly, the idea of never coming back to Caelondor is tempting. But so is the urge to bring you a barrel of blueberries only to see you scowl. Can you please start liking them? They’re the loveliest
[MAGNUS]Every single pair of eyes in the council room is fixed on me. This isn’t the first time I’ve been a subject of their collective gazes, but this is clearly the first time I’ve cowered under it. I keep my head bowed low, projecting the emotion I feel — heartbreak for Ruelle’s betrayal and disappointment in my inability to find her. But this won’t support my claim — the claim I’ve put forward in front of the council. “They were attacked in the woods, and Ruelle was taken away.”I should be angry, aggravated, thrashing anything and everything in my way. I should be making statements of how I’ll make those who took her suffer. Anything to make my words more believable. Anything for Eldric to believe that Ruelle didn’t run away to escape her marriage. But I fail. I fail to grasp control of my own actions, of my movements. The mate bond pulls strongly at me, and I grit my teeth, holding back the pain Elara is suffering that I now experience too. The questions that trickle into m
[MAGNUS]Everything happens in a haze. One moment I’m standing too confused on all fours wondering what odd twist of fate has occurred and how I find myself with a mate once again — the mate being Elara, of all people. And the next, all the air has been emptied from my lungs as I watch the arrow hiss through the air and lodge into her wolf form’s neck. As she collapses to the ground, her body shifts back into her human form. When I reach her, I’m human once again — not even realizing when the command reverberated through my mind. Blood trickles down her skin, pooling at her collarbone, as I hold her up in my lap. Creed howls at the pain his mate is experiencing but I’m too shocked, too numb to do anything. “Elara,” her name finally escapes my lips in a choked whisper. “Elara, please…”My hand hovers over the wound, but I’m not even sure what to do. She’s dying, I think as I press down gently, desperate to stop the flow, but it only seeps through my fingers.I try to breathe, but th
[LILA]Lila races through the dense forest, her paws striking the earth with relentless speed. The world around her is a blur, the scents of moss and bark barely registering as she focuses solely on the chase. Ahead, the blue-eyed wolf’s scent grows fainter, but Lila pushes herself harder, determined to close the distance. Her instincts scream at her to catch up, to protect, to keep the young wolf within her reach.The beat of the wolf’s paws pounds through the earth, faint yet distinct, and Lila’s muscles tense with every stride. She tries reaching out to the wolf through the mind-link, calling her despite not knowing her name, but the distance makes it impossible to connect. Her human’s panic flickers through their shared consciousness, tightening in her mind, urging Lila not to slow, not to give up. But Lila’s resolve is unwavering. She won’t fail.Suddenly, her pace falters. She skids to a stop, frozen mid-stride, as something strange washes over her — a powerful, magnetic pull tha
[MAGNUS]As I add the final strokes to the canvas, Alistair steps forward, his voice cutting through the quiet air of the gallery. “Lady Celia has arrived,” he informs me in his usual calm tone.I pause, setting the brush down with care. I step back, my gaze fixed on the painting in front of me, trying to soak in what I’ve just done. It feels strange — almost foreign — to stand here and look at something I’ve created with my own hands after all these years. A heavy sigh escapes me as I take in the finished piece. It is perfect, almost a replica.I can already picture Elara’s reaction. She will be pleased. She’ll smile — a smile I’ve rarely seen directed toward me, but one I’ve longed for more than I care to admit. And the thought of that smile, of seeing her light up with joy, stirs something inside me that I’ve kept buried for far too long.Happiness.It’s been so long since I’ve dared to pursue it. But now… now it feels like something I’m ready to bet on. Something I’m willing to ri
[ELARA]Ruelle insists on taking the horses instead of a palanquin, much to the distaste of Lady Celia. Despite all of her mother’s efforts to persuade her, Ruelle remains stubbornly set on her wish to ride into the forest, claiming, “I’ve grown up now, and I can make my own choices!”Lady Celia passes her a glare, but it dissolves as soon as Ruelle wraps her in an embrace. “You must let me make decisions now, mother. But that’s not to say my love or respect for you has diminished in any way. I will always love you and hold you in the highest regard.”For a moment, I hold my breath, expecting my mother-in-law to break out into tears. Her lower lip twitches and then she swallows hard, easing into the hug for a brief moment before letting go. “You’ll always be my little girl, Rue,” she manages to speak in a thick voice before clearing her throat and regaining the sharp edge in her tone. “Don’t flatter me now. It’s your night. Do what you wish.” As Ruelle hops onto the horse that the gua
[MAGNUS]The words I spoke to Elara this morning play over and over in my mind, like a song that refuses to stop, growing louder with each passing hour. They were true, every word, but now I wish I had kept my mouth shut. I should have turned around the moment I realized she was bathing. Creed, my wolf, growls in agreement, though he’s as conflicted as I am.But my heart didn’t listen to reason. I stayed. And for the first time in a long while, I let myself be completely vulnerable.I spoke. I gave voice to everything I’ve been holding back, and now I can’t stop thinking about how foolish it was to break the silence I’ve kept so carefully guarded. I let my walls down — walls I’ve built and reinforced over the years, since the day I lost Nyra. Nyra.Creed howls her name in my mind, stirring the old grief that I’ve learned to keep buried. I promised myself I would never forget her. She was my mate, my first and only love. How could I let myself think, even for a moment, that Elara coul
[ELARA] The royal gallery looms ahead of us, its grand doors slightly ajar, waiting to swallow us into its quiet, forgotten world — it’s a place where the very history of Caelondor is etched into the walls, immortalized in paintings and tapestries. And yet it is quiet. I’ve never understood why the residents of the palace don’t seem to appreciate this place more. Perhaps they’ve all been here too many times, their eyes no longer able to see its beauty. But for me, every visit feels like a discovery — a journey into the heart of the past. The sunlight through the window sends the colors of the stained glass dancing across the marble floor, but the gallery remains utterly still, devoid of life beyond us.Ruelle paces slowly in front of the stained-glass wall, her hands clasped in front of her as if holding herself together. She looks incredibly beautiful today, her features sharper, her eyes bluer despite the frown that doesn’t seem to fade. The stained glass wall paints her silhouet